Sigmund Romberg

Description

Hungarian-born composer Sigmund Romberg (1887–1951) arrived in America in 1909 and within eight years had achieved his first hit musical on Broadway. This early success was soon followed by others, and in the 1920s his popularity in musical theater was unsurpassed. In this book, William Everett offers the first detailed study of the gifted operetta composer, examining Romberg’s key works and musical accomplishments and demonstrating his lasting importance in the history of American musicals. Romberg composed nearly sixty works for musical theater as well as music for revues, for musical comedies, and, later in life, for Hollywood films. Everett shows how Romberg was a defining figure of American operetta in the 1910s and 1920s (Maytime, Blossom Time, The Student Prince), traces the new model for operetta that he developed with Oscar Hammerstein II in the late 1920s (The Desert Song, The New Moon), and looks at his reworked style of the 1940s (Up in Central Park). This book offers an illuminating look at Romberg’s Broadway career and legacy. Contents List of Tables Foreword Acknowledgments Prologue Chapter 1. Sigmund Romberg: The Man and His Music Chapter 2. Finding a Voice: Operetta, Revue, and Musical Comedy Chapter 3. Staging Nostalgia: The Road to Maytime Chapter 4. Continued Success: The Magic Melody and Blossom Time Chapter 5. Young Love in Old Heidelberg: The Student Prince Chapter 6. Romance and Exoticism in North Africa: The Desert Song Chapter 7. Exploring New Possibilities: From Cherry Blossoms to The New Moon Chapter 8. Emulating the Past: Later Stage Works Chapter 9. Romberg in Hollywood Chapter 10. Building a Legacy Epilogue: Romberg’s Influence on the American Musical Theater Appendix A: Work List Appendix B: Broadcasts of The Railroad Hour Featuring Operettas by Romberg Appendix C: Selected Discography Notes Selected Bibliography Index Credits